The shipping industry worldwide is experiencing a shortage of trained and qualified officers to operate a rapidly expanding global merchant fleet. High cadet wastage in Maritime Education and Training (MET) institutions is an obstacle to skills replenishment in the UK. This paper examines the specificity of MET programmes with regard to the question of attrition and explores the intricate ways in which globalisation in the industry and the seafaring sector has influenced declining training opportunities and rising attrition rates in the UK.